Dash Pad Questions

[TRIPLE-GREEN]

Dash pad removal.
   I really have 2 questions. One who makes the best color reproduction dash pad for a green 73 challenger?
   Second do you have to pull the windshield to remove the dash pad? I have had conflicting stories.

TIPS WOULD BE GREAT!!

[NoMope Greg]

As I mentioned in your Newbie thread, the big two are Just Dashes in Van Nuys (who will strip your pad down and rebuild and recover it) and Ultimate Rides (who will ship you a new one and you ship back your core.)  Both places have pluses and minues and it's a little hit and miss. 

You can take out the pad without removing the windshield, but it's not too easy.  There are some fasteners in the dash vents that are difficult to get at with the windshield in.

[TRIPLE-GREEN]

do they do green. Or will I have to color match?
Also any idea on price with the guys in Van nuys? Ruffly!!

[gkring]

roughly $800 by the time it is delivered. catch them on sale for less. I got mine for $500 when the group buy went on for the ultimate rides dash. They will get it the right color green. Grain will be slightly off for an original, but looks good for most fo us. Don't be afraid to call the vendors, that is what they are there for.

[troutstreamnm]

Just Dashes should be able to fix you up with the green dash.  They do nice work, but you will pay dearly for it.  Not sure what the current rates are, but I'll guess $700-$800   I had a bad experience with Ultimate Rides dealing with getting my core deposit back.  Finally got it after getting eBay, Discover and the BBB involved, but I'll never go back.  FYI

[NoMope Greg]

I was going to guess on the Just Dashes price, but the UR price is correct.  You'll have an easier time with them if you go through az-nick, as he has a good relationship with the owner of UR and is a good agent for his customers.  I also got mine through a group buy he organized - sorry, too late to get in - but it's still cheaper than Just Dashes.  For you, being in Orange County, it might not be $800 because you can deliver it directly to them and not have to pay for shipping.  Either way, you're gonna be out a few bills.  But as you're going to discover, nothing about this hobby is cheap, although it won't be so bad for you because you're starting with a better base than most.

[toomanyprojects]

Welcome to the site nate-
if your not in a hurry for your dash-call alan and ask him if he could make one for you and bring it to the fall fling if he is attending-
i had him bring my dash to spring fling in april and i got it for $491.00-show pricing!  

[TRIPLE-GREEN]

Does that include color or was that only for black?

[toomanyprojects]

Price was for black only-colors i believe were about 25.00-30.00  more.-

[Chryco Psycho]

I have done it both ways , if you are going to pull the dash frame the 4 bolt inside the defroster vent are virtually impossible to get at unless you have tiny hands , you will need a flexable drive to get at them as the angle is not straight , it is far easier to do it with the windshield removed
Btw the Just Dashes Pad I bought was porrly done . the corners were not rebuilt at all & didn`t come near the plastic lower panels 

[TRIPLE-GREEN]

Thanks for the  ! I would like to do this when i get the top redone. So all the info is GREAT!!

[FM3V6M]

I got mine from Just Dashes and it came out perfect, the fit is great but I've heard of not so good results from others.  I went in person and dropped it off and picked it up as I live relatively near by (as do you).  Saved $$$ on shipping and since I paid cash I didn't pat sales tax AND got 'priority' service and had it back in about 2-1/2 weeks.     

[JH27N0B]

My ultimate Rides dash that I ordered through AZ-Nick literally just arrived less than an hour ago and looks really good.  For me having to deal with shipping my core to CA if I chose Just Dashes and then for return shipping, along with UR's lower price, made the choice to go with UR vs. Just Dash's product an easy one for me. I saved over $300. But if you live close enough to JD to drop off and pick up that would certainly tend to give an advantage back to them.
Looking at the UR dash compared to my core, it looks like the grain pattern may be slightly fainter, other than that, I see no difference.  I hear people complain that Just Dashes products are "too puffy" and that is most noticable by the recess for the VIN tag.
A friend of mine who lives near me and put an Ultimate Rides dashpad in his '70 cuda let me take a close look at his dash a few months ago before I decided to go with Nicks group buy and get UR.  He told me that installing his UR dash a few years ago involved a lot of trimming to make it fit.  It looked pretty good in his car.
The opinion I have got watching posts on this subject over the years and the opinion I seem to get from them is that Ultimate Rides keeps getting a little better and Just Dashes stays the same or gets a bit worse.
I've taken the pad out of my T/A a few times and reinstalled once, and it wasn't a bad job.  I didn't take out a windshield or anything, just crawled under the dash and worked away at it.
I have heard that the job is much easier if you actually drop the steering column, and remove the nuts so that you can tilt or actually remove the dash frame.  I haven't done that so I can't speak first hand.
I was working on the dash pad on my T/A which is a low option car.  My convertible on the other hand, is loaded with 3 speaker dash, AC, etc.  Its pad is cracked and every year I tell myself when I go to store the car for the winter, I will remove the pad, and send out to JD to get restored.  Then when fall comes I take a look at it and loose my enthusiasm!  With all the AC ducting and speaker wires and such, it looks like a job from hell!

[Katfish]

You can pull out the entire dash assembly, then remove the dash from the metal frame.

It's really quite simple.  Disconnect the wiring harnesses, couple bolts each side, lower steering column, entire structure will come out.

[340SIX]

As I mentioned in your Newbie thread, the big two are Just Dashes in Van Nuys (who will strip your pad down and rebuild and recover it) and Ultimate Rides (who will ship you a new one and you ship back your core.)  Both places have pluses and minues and it's a little hit and miss. 

You can take out the pad without removing the windshield, but it's not too easy.  There are some fasteners in the dash vents that are difficult to get at with the windshield in.

I am very happy with the just dash's job they did on my 70 dash